HHS Advances Kennedy’s Old ‘Placebo’ Vaccine Safety Claims

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has a long history of undermining confidence in vaccine safety, including by repeatedly claiming that vaccines are not tested in placebo-controlled trials, a familiar anti-vaccine trope.

Now, an HHS spokesperson has used similar language in a statement that falsely said there’s little available evidence on whether vaccines are safe.

“Except for the COVID vaccine, none of the vaccines on the CDC’s childhood recommended schedule was tested against an inert placebo, meaning we know very little about the actual risk profiles of these products,” the HHS spokesperson told the Washington Post. Other journalists also have published the statement.

The spokesperson also appeared to suggest a policy change and misleadingly said: “All new vaccines will undergo safety testing in placebo-controlled trials prior to licensure — a radical departure from past practices.”